Raymond Ackerman founded the Pick N Pay Group, a supermarket chain with 870 stores in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Australia. His fortune is down by $50 million from a year ago along with Pick N Pay's stock price. The company is facing fierce competition from Shoprite and Woolworths. New CEO Richard Brasher hopes to slash the company's costs and streamline its supply chain. Ackerman built a strong reputation

as a consumer champion, fighting supplier cartels in bread, petrol, cigarettes and many other industries. Ackerman no longer has executive responsibilities at Pick N Pay, but he owns 53% of the stock. The Ackerman Family Educational Trust supports university education for about 60 students and aids the mentally and physically disabled. Raymond's grandfather Meyer Ackerman moved to South Africa from Lithuania at the end of the 19th century. His ostrich-feather business failed, but he later opened a grocery store in Cape Town.

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